The Cottage on the Hill

Ever since baby boy was born my nesting instincts have kicked into full gear! Where were they when I was pregnant? I actually find myself weighing whether I want to take nap time, morning time or children's bedtime to go to sleep myself (which is sorely needed) or use the time to work on a project around the house. Today, napping won hands down, but I have a project I'm dying to tackle. It may have to wait until tomorrow.

Who are you? That's the question I ask my newborn son almost every day. Today is his 2 week birthday and he's grown and changed so much already! Yet, he is still a mystery. Who he is: his personality, his interests, his character, his faults, his strengths are still wrapped up inside his newborn soul. He moved a LOT in the womb, so I figured he'd be a wiggly spit-fire. Then he came out and proved to be quite laid back. I don't assume he'll be just like his big brother, all outdoorsy, and all about farms and tractors. Will he play instruments with those LONG fingers he has? Will he continue to be quiet and easy going? Who are you, little man? I can hardly wait to find out!

Baby boy gained back 60% of the weight he lost after delivery! Thanks to Renee's suggestion of www.kellymom.com/bf/index.html, I got some great info on everything breast feeding. Things are going well now and I have plenty of milk. Now, baby boy is asleep and I should be as well.

It is funny how some women, no matter what, can make milk like crazy. For me, breast feeding is a delicate matter. I dried up within 3 months after the birth of my oldest and my middle child. Yesterday once again proved that I have to be mindful and careful when it comes to my milk. Big brother and big sister were rather disobedient and difficult and it caused me great stress. It felt like every time I put baby to breast a fight broke out...a fight bad enough to need physical intervention to tear them off each other. My milk was reduced by half and my let downs were fewer and much weaker. So, once the older kiddos were tucked into bed, I made every effort to relax. I also nursed baby boy on demand, as I've done since he was born, and turned out from 5 pm to 9pm, he nursed every hour on the hour. Then, overnight, he nursed every 2 hours until 3:30 am when he obviously had a good, full feed and was able to sleep for 3 hours until the next feeding. I am fuller this morning. B...

Baby boy's cord stump fell out yesterday! My cousin and his wife had their baby yesterday morning! She's adorable, but baby boy and I got kicked out of the maternity ward by the head nurse. Apparently, babies aren't allowed in the maternity ward. At least not the ones that weren't born there. :b Baby boy's been sleeping most of the day and choosing his wide awake time to be in the late evening. This early-to-bed Momma is a bit sleep deprived now. I usually correct this by co-sleeping, but baby boy is too small to co-sleep for the purpose of nursing/suckling. He's nose gets squished and he can't latch on properly in the lay-down position. So that means Mommy has to sit up with him. Not that I really mind. He's so precious to look at and it's amazing watching him grow! A young lady from church came over with a pint of Ben and Jerry's and a helpful hand weeding the garden. We had a great time chatting and weeding until the rain drops started...

Baby Boy is one week old today! He's doing so well and we are all smitten with him. I am amazed at his growth and progress in just 1 week! Baby Boy is a quiet lad who only cries when it is necessary (at least so far). During his wakeful times, he enjoys staring at patterns or his mommy. He's great at turning his head to look around and listens intently when I sing. He's not the strongest feeder, yet and prefers multiple quick snacks rather than spaced out dinners. His umbilical cord stump is almost ready to fall off. He likes to be swaddled and loves being held. So much so that when I do hold him, he falls asleep almost instantly, but if I put him down, he wakes up. Not all the time, though. :)

Happy Father's Day to my dear husband who is an excellent, loving, supportive, hardworking, caring, fun-loving, endearing father to our children. Anyhow, I decided to post my birth story here: Monday, I felt great! I cleaned the house in preparation for our son's arrival and spent part of the evening praying with a friend of mine that we may both go into labor soon and avoid being induced. By the way, both our prayers were answered. I went to bed around 10 pm and was just drifting off the sleep when my pants felt wet. I thought, "you've got to be kidding me!" You see, I was hoping the baby would arrive later that week. Hubby was working out of town and had just left Sunday evening. After some double checking, I called hubby, called my parents and called the hospital. They wanted me to come right in. So, off we go to the hospital. I prayed hubby would make it in time for the delivery since he had quite a drive. At the hospital, I wasn't having any co...

More news to come when I'm not typing one handed. Can you guess why?

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. My laptop crashed and my desktop will not allow me to log into blogger. I took the time to not really bother blogging at all, but I think I'll start blogging again at www.taighbeag.wordpress.com . In fact, regular readers, if you ever see me disappear for a time, check out that blog. I may be posting there. As for me, I am doing well. The baby is still inside. Thanks to my sister for posting this post for me.

Thanks to Suzanne at Not Quite Donna Reed , I was inspired to start making my own cakes again and putting my glass cake stand to use. I used a recipe in my 1956 The American Peoples Cookbook for banana cake and banana frosting, but as I tend to do, I altered it. I put in my food processor: 1 cup whole raw almonds (whirr the processor until the almonds turn into an almond flour) 1 cup arrowroot flour 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour 2 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. salt 1/4 cup sugar 1 tsp. vanilla 2 brown-skinned bananas (removed from their peel, of course) 1/2 cup real maple syrup tbsp. molasses 2 eggs 1/4 cup plain full-fat yogurt (I didn't have buttermilk on hand) Blend it all well and I baked it in a cake pan at 350 degrees for I don't recall how long. I tend to ignore the clock and go by smell. I don't know how I do it, but when it smells done to me it usually is. For the frosting: Put in food processor: 1 brown-flecked banana 1/2 tsp. lemon ju...

Last week I was in a hurry, needed groceries, had two kiddos (one heading for a nap) and knew that Target doesn't sell cedar mothballs so I went to the Walmart Super Center. I bought the groceries on my list and made my usual dinners without diverting from the recipes and we all came to the same conclusion, "Yuck!" Today I opened the container of GV cottage cheese and took a taste. It was DISCUSTING without being rancid. I'd hate to waste it so I'm wondering if I could make some sort of cheesecake or something out of it. Otherwise it is unpalatable for lone consumption. And since when does cottage cheese need a laundry list of ingredients?! Ok, I admit, I'm spoiled by farm foods and better quality products. But my goodness, even Aldi's cottage cheese is 100 times better than GV! It is true. Once you've had the real deal there's no going back. The Parent's Choice diapers leak like a sieve. (I usually buy the Target ones.....yeah, I have...

After two days of brooding I am off the nest today. I love feeling more energetic, though I'm still sitting on my fanny in front of this computer! The weather has turned windy and COLD! It is temporary, though, the sun is shining and the lawn will need mowing soon! I love that the alfalfa field next door is greening up nicely and I see little baby leaves on the trees and shrubs! Soon dappled shade will cover the south side of my house and hopefully I'll get my hands on a rototiller so I can start my garden. Well, I suppose I ought to get my daughter down for her nap and put my energy to use.

When I was a young girl we had chickens and I always thought it was funny how cross the brooding hens looked. Today, I am pregnant and feeling just a broody as those hens. I'm trying not to let my brooding state affect me so but it seems I can't help it. After a few days of heavy activity, perhaps the brooding is a way to get me to just relax. I just hate that downer feeling! I've been singing hymns and trying to pray (my brain is all mushy and I'm having a hard time focusing) but I'm really just chalking it up to one of those pregnant moods. At least it is nice out today and I took the kiddos outside to play and enjoy the sun and warmth. As a treat, we got to see the neighbor and his granddaughter driving their pony around the field! There are so many benefits to living in the country!

Vincent Van Gogh You can buy this print at www.art.com After a bit of rainy weather we are having unusually warm weather for April and I'm thoroughly enjoying watching everything turn from brown to green!!

Madame Vigee-Lebrun and Her Daughter, Jeanne-Lucie-Louise (1780-1819) 1789 You can get this print at www.art.com A great deal of stress and worry was lifted off my shoulders when my husband made it clear that a perfectly neat home and stressed out wife and cranky kids were NOT what he wanted to come home to. He'd be much happier coming home to a happy wife and kids and just a clear path to his favorite chair where he receives the kisses and embraces of a wife, a son, a daughter and a 50 pound dog who thinks she's a lap dog. For some reason it was ingrained in me that a home isn't happy unless it is clean and tidy. Granted, a perpetually dirty and disorganized home can and does cause added stress, grief and even illness, it shouldn't be our number one goal to mop the kitchen floor every day while our children look to us for attention. My husband didn't marry a HOUSEKEEPER. He married a HOMEMAKER! My job is to make a home and that entails more than just outward ti...

I had read somewhere that lemon water is good for easing heartburn, but I just brushed it off. After all, I have a big container of fruit flavored tums to put the fire out during pregnancy. Then, I started getting sick in that I was sick of plain water and the tums were making me terribly nauseous-I mean viciously nauseous! So, I started drinking lemon water and fully expected the citrus to aggravate the heartburn I experience every pregnancy (and yes, I do give birth to children with full heads of hair). After all, orange juice brought on the burn. The opposite occured. I could eat nearly anything I normally would and not experience heartburn! So, the tums lay untouched and I am now a believer in lemon water. One glass every other day (and carefully not overdoing it and sleeping properly) have nearly completely eliminated my heartburn! This is especially comforting because of sugar issues I'm having during this pregnancy I have to eat before I go to bed or else I awaken i...

Back and forth I go in my thoughts. The other day I received in the mail an issue of Natural Home magazine. In it is an article about a lady who built a 280 square foot house that she currently lives in. After reading the article, I felt like we could quite easily maintain living in our 880 square foot cottage. Just a little tweaking here and there to accommodate our growing family and we'd be fine. I do love our little cottage and I don't mind (too much) the confining spaces. I love how it is easy to clean (though very easy to mess up, too) and forces me to not accumulate too much stuff. I also love how it is easy to keep an eye on my wee ones. I'm rarely ever just a few steps away from them. A small house also forces us out doors and we enjoy the elbow room of the spacious farm fields, woods and our own backyard. From time to time, though, it is apparent that a little more square footage would be greatly appreciated. Bumping into furniture gets old quickly. La...

Tomorrow is supposed to start a stretch of sunny, warm weather and, thankfully, it coincides with when I normally start my seedlings! I'm excited! So is my son who wants his own little garden patch especially since Grandma bought him and his sister new watering cans. Today, I plan on finally ordering plants. I kept putting it off but no longer. Today's the day! Final decisions must be made.

I am on a quest to find a good triple stroller. I want one suitable for an infant who cannot sit up yet (carrier adaptable), a toddler and a preschooler. I want one that collapses fairly small, has canopies and isn't side-by-side. Side-by-sides are too wide for maneuvering around stores and fairs. It also has to maneuver well and be sturdy enough for near-daily use. Any ideas?

How to Build a Living Fence